Kroon will have surgery on Monday, California out

BMC Racing's Karsten Kroon is scheduled to have surgery Monday morning to repair facial injuries he sustained during a crash on Wednesday during the Fléche Wallonne. With 70 kilometers remaining in the race, Kroon and several other riders collided with a guardrial, with the Dutchman coming away with a broken nose, cheekbone and sinus bone on the right side of his face.

“To be honest, the injury has been pretty painful,” he said. “ I am constantly taking painkillers to make it bearable.”

The operation will be performed at a hospital in Tongeren, Belgium and is expected to take doctors 90 minutes. “The biggest problem is that my cheekbone is pushed in about a centimeter and my nose is displaced. So they have to put it back in position," Kroon explained.

Doctors will be inserting titanium plates into Kroon's face to repair the fractures. The Dutchman expects to be off the bike at least two weeks. Once he is able to resume training, he hopes to be racing again within two or three weeks. This puts his expected return to the peloton beyond the start of the Tour of California. Earlier this week Kroon stated he wanted to come back for the American Tour.